6 SEO Trends You Should Watch Out for as a Business Owner

In today’s world, where brick-and-mortar sales have to be complemented by an online presence, businesses have to take SEO very seriously. On the other hand, if the business is only online, it needs to direct a significant amount of its marketing budget towards SEO. The reason is that 53.3% of website searches come from organic searches on search engines.

However, SEO is not just a one-time investment. Even if your website ranks at the top on keywords related to your business, you need to keep your SEO strategy up to date with the latest trends to maintain the position.

In this blog, we explore six prominent upcoming SEO trends that businesses need to watch out for to keep at the top or attain a top position in the industry:

1. AI and Content Generation 

AI is one of the top trends in the digital marketing landscape. While many marketers are steering clear of AI right now, Google is sure to incorporate AI into their search experience to make the most of this evolving technology.

But will this development impact SEO? The answer is yes. AI provides search engines with the ability to give users to-the-point answers. If AI is incorporated into search engines, it will make it difficult for websites that get traffic on their websites by providing short and relevant answers to user questions. 

2. Topical Authority 

AI will indeed revolutionize the search engine experience, but despite this trend, content will still be king in 2023 and beyond. Businesses that establish their authority in the industry by sharing informational content will grow quicker than those who are only adding marketing content to their website. 

But becoming a go-to source for information is not easy. Apart from adding informational content, SEO rank tracking can help businesses keep track of their goals. Once they can assess which content and SEO strategy works, they can reach a wider audience and establish credibility.  

That being said, both ranking and content combined will lead to long-term success with SEO. So, don’t attempt to trick Google with shallow content. Rich content that adds value and is equipped with the right keywords ranks on Google and helps the business to develop credibility and authority on the subject. 

3. Featured Snippets 

Featured snippets are a great way to give value to your audience. Users are also keen to get answers without having to read long website content. 

But the issue is that these are zero-click searches. This means that the audience will get the answer they are searching for but might not visit the website. When Google’s algorithm does not detect clicks, the website is likely to get de-ranked, even if it provides the right answer to the audience in an answer box. 

4. Interactive Content

With podcasting and video content on the rise, blog readership is continually declining. That doesn’t mean that the traditional article does not hold any value. It only means that the way people are absorbing content is changing. 

Although 77% of internet users read blogs online, it is now or never for existing businesses to revolutionize their content strategy. Apart from value-adding blogs, SEO marketing also needs to have content that is interactive. But how to make the content interactive and interesting while adding value?

·  Add Images

The simplest way to make a blog interactive is to add images in between the content. Content boxes that emphasize a point or highlight a key fact can also help break the monotonous nature of a traditional blog. 

·  Quizzes

Quizzes provide businesses the opportunity to get to know about the audience while developing their interest in the content. 

·  Infographics

Turning the information into an infographic makes it more understandable for the audience. So, they don’t have to read long pieces of text to understand the point. They can grasp it through graphics and shortened content. 

Infographics also make the content more searchable. This means that people who are searching for images on the topic will also get the infographic and so will those who are looking to read an in-depth blog. 

5. Voice Search 

With people rapidly adapting to voice assistants, voice search is the top trend in 2023 for SEO specialists. But does voice search really change how people use search engines? The answer is that it definitely does. 

While people omit pronouns while typing on search engines, they use complete sentences when interacting with a voice assistant. So, if they are searching for a restaurant near their area, they will probably search for “restaurant Sugar Land” when they are typing. On the other hand, with a voice assistant, they will say “Find the best restaurants near me”. 

This change means that SEO content creators will have to target longtail keywords. The rise of the “Near me” searches means that the business must optimize their website for local searches and ensure that their location is accurate. Genuine customer reviews can also help businesses to establish credibility with these kinds of searches.  

6. Optimizing for Mobile Devices

Out of all the organic searches on the web, mobile devices have a 63% share. This means that 63 out of 100 people searching on the web are using their mobile devices. Although this fact doesn’t impact the content strategy, it does impact the web layout, which comes under SEO as well. If the website is not optimized according to the mobile layout, it will increase the website’s bounce rate.

Furthermore, while popups might be mildly annoying on desktops, they impact the user experience on the mobile. Because of its mobile-first indexing, Google also doesn’t rank websites that show popups on mobile devices. 

Final Words

Just like marketing trends change with the audience, SEO trends are also changing. The difference is that traditional marketing relies on the audience while SEO relies on the audience as well as the changing technology. The rapid changes in AI technologies, voice search, and Google algorithms make up the SEO trends of 2023. Businesses need to watch out for these trends, so they don’t only sustain their position in the industry but also grow.

Apart from keeping a watch for these trends, businesses also need to keep assessing their SEO position so they can experiment with new strategies or try out old ones to stay ahead of the competition.